Quick Solutions for Quick Resolutions

Many concerns or issues can be treated in very few sessions, sometimes as few as 2. Dr. Daria Shewchuk is well versed and experienced with solution focused therapies and may be able to help you resolve your concerns within a few sessions. Long-term counseling is often not necessary.

Dr. Shewchuk has stopped working with children

While Dr. Shewchuk spent decades working with children, often in the area of sexual assault or abuse, she is now semi-retired.

As a result Dr. Daria Shewchuk no longer sees children.

Although Dr. Daria loves working with kids, the record keeping requirements (i.e. the legal and regulatory obligations of a child psychology practice) are too long-term for a semi-retired professional to uphold.

Dr. Shewchuk has written a book titled, Understanding & Healing Children Who Act out Sexually. This book aims to help those who are interested in or impacted by young children who sexually act out..

Your teenager does not have to 'talk' with Dr. Daria to be helped; many non-verbal therapies are available.

Dr. Daria Shewchuk can assist young people through grief, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, anger or anger management issues and more. It is not necessary for a teenager to be willing to do talk therapy with Dr. Daria as she has many other tools in her kit, many non-talk methods.

A classic experience is a teenage daughter seeming sullen and unwilling to open up to their mother, father, or guardian. Dr. Daria Shewchuk can assist in this type of situation with non-talk therapies.

Suggest: Bring the teenager to Dr. Daria for an initial session to see how it goes. Most often the teenager is willing and often even wanting to return.

Try a treatment other than talk or medication, non-verbal therapies are available

Helpful in many ways for personal growth and issue resolution

Mindfulness is the act of paying attention to one’s mental, emotional, and physical experiences in a non-judgmental way, in the present moment. Also critical to the experience of mindfulness is a spirit of compassion toward oneself and life in general. This approach can be used in conjunction with other approaches.

How mindfulness works to reduce stress and improve overall wellbeing has received a great deal of scholarly attention recently. There are thought to be five mechanisms by which mindfulness may help you to achieve improved well-being:

1. Exposure – by attending to unpleasant states, we learn that they are most often fleeting and not in actual serious danger,

2. Nonattachment – the act of attending to the present moment without desiring to change it has been shown to be related to improved well-being,

3. Insight – recognizing that our thoughts and feelings are not necessarily accurate representations of ourselves or reality, and through such insight we may be in a better position to detach from harmful thoughts and emotions,

We offer private and discrete addictions counselling

Recover from loss

What connects and fulfills us can be lost. Those who have experienced the loss of a loved one, of a relationship, of one’s faculties or a preferred situation, know the desperate feeling that cold emptiness can bring.

Grief takes the time that it takes to heal and it is not simply resolved from encouragement or advice from well-intended family and friends.

Grief and loss counselling offers a safe and understanding space for sorrow to be felt and understood before it is possible for one’s attention to shift towards a new way of seeing what is lost and what remains.

Grief is often misunderstood and rushed. After their pain is felt and understood in a compassionate way, grieving individuals are better able to move beyond stillness towards acceptance.

Learn new ways to deal with the bad things that have happened to you

Trauma therapy

Dr. Daria Shewchuk has created courses and taught graduate level courses on trauma treatment. Working in this area is one of her specialties.

Trauma therapy needs to include a number of components and works best when the therapist is familiar with different types of trauma, the stages of trauma treatment and the various components which need to be addressed (which usually requires different approaches for different parts at different times).

Prompt treatment of children is crucial because the psycho-neuro-biological effects can be profound – if left untreated.

The components include:

Psychoeducation – providing information about trauma, symptoms, treatment and answering questions, including providing information about the neuro-biological effects of trauma and what can help that.

Distress reduction and Affect regulation training – i.e. how to calm yourself, when anxious, having a flashback, strong feelings. The key is learning to handle emotional distress and develop more effective (and healthy) coping skills. This may include relaxation training; Anger management; Addressing flashbacks; Anger management; and Stress management.

Emotional processing – after a person has developed adequate methods of handling emotional distress and good coping skills.

Working with persons suffering from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and Complex PTSD

Working with persons who have multiple co-morbidities

Grief and Bereavement

Working with First Nations persons/communities

Working with Sexual Abusers and Victims of Sexual Abuse

Teaching

Dr. Daria Shewchuk's teaching experience includes developing and instructing courses in psychology, social work, early childhood education, and counselling children.

Dr. Shewchuk has taught graduate programs in Counselling Psychology at SFU, and City University.

She provided field instruction for the University of Calgary, Pacifica Graduate Institute, the University College of the Cariboo, City University and the University of Victoria.

Additionally, Dr. Daria taught social work to students at the Alberta Vocational College, Grant MacEwan University and the University College of the Cariboo.

In addition to her formalized teaching, she has conducted numerous workshops and seminars for professionals.

Workshops

Please note that all our workshops, seminars and courses may be tailored to the population that you serve and the needs of your community. The following workshops have been offered in the past and are periodically offered.

Generally these workshops are geared towards counsellors in the field (e.g. psychologists, social workers, clinical counsellors, etc). Participants must have a minimum of a Bachelors degree in an appropriate discipline. Generally Workshops are divided into four groups, details of each can be found in the links below:

Please see the First Nations section below for Workshops geared toward the First Nations Community

First Nations

Dr. Daria Shewchuk provides in-service seminars training, and workshops, for counsellors, teachers, and medical professionals in the area of working with First Nations persons and communities.

She has provided, and continues to provide, services to a number of First Nations communities in Alberta and BC. In addition to services to individuals, Dr. Daria is available for on-site mental health services, training, workshops or other professional clinical services as needed.

Dr. Shewchuk has worked with First Nations persons living in Edmonton’s inner city and in the far North (i.e. the Yukon and Northwest Territory). Dr. Daria provided mental health services, under contract, at a Northern Alberta reserve for 12 years, including consulting, prior to moving to British Columbia. Dr. Daria provided specialized treatment for individuals who were experiencing complicated grief, addictions, and multiple, long term abuse “on site” at the reserve. She also provided services “on site” to a number of other Alberta, and British Columbia First Nations communities.

Dr. Daria continues to provide clinical services, consultation, and training to a variety of First Nations communities and is available to provide a wide range of services from individual counselling to workshops and training services.

Dr. Daria Shewchuk has written and previously provided the following workshops and can easily adapt them for your groups' needs:

“The Effects of Trauma and PTSD” (a review of the literature and research – including a review of the long term effects of multiple and long term trauma as related to sexual abuse and Residential school experiences, including Postcolonial stress effects) on day one of a two day workshop for native bands.

“When Children Act Out Sexually: Abuse Reactive Children” (with a section on Adult sex offenders) on day two of the same two day workshop for native bands as above.

“When Children Act Out Sexually: Abuse Reactive Children” A two day workshop of Research on Children with Conduct Disorder

“Grief and Loss” A two day workshop geared for Band Social Development Workers

“Introduction to Counselling Children” A two day workshop geared for Band Social Development Workers

“Sexually Abused Children” A two day workshop geared for Band Social Development Workers

First Nations persons have been, and continue to be, subjected to extensive and varied traumas. The psychological treatment of First Nations persons is often more complicated as a result of these traumas.

A Brief Review of the Research into the History of First Nations Trauma and Trauma Rehabilitation

In their book entitled Native American Postcolonial Psychology, Duran and Duran (1995) summarize the effects of the colonization. They state:Native American people have been subjected to one of the most systematic attempts at genocide in the world’s history. At the beginning of the colonization process in North America there were over 10 million Native American people living on the continent. By the year 1900 there were only 250,000 people left (Thornton, 1986). For over five hundred years Europeans have attempted to subjugate, exterminate, assimilate, and oppress Native American people. The effects of this subjugation and extermination have been devastating both physically and psychologically (p.28).

Therapists need an understanding of what Braveheart-Jordan (1995) refers to as the historical trauma and the historical legacy and its profound impact upon the Aboriginal people. Part of the traumatic events included the forced removal of First Nations children from their families and the placing of them in “Indian boarding schools” or “residential schools”.

The rate of all types of abuse in these “residential schools” was high. However, though information regarding the nature of the abuse suffered by those living in these schools has been narratively documented (Tafoya & DelVecchio, 1996), statistical information on the incidence of abuse has been kept confidential by the Canadian government, and the agencies that the government funds (such as the Provincial Residential School Project, located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada). The unusual confidentiality around this issue may possibly be due to the numbers of “residential school survivors” taking the government and churches to court for compensation. A search of the literature, review of Canada census, and a review of the First-Nations literature, provided no prevalence rates. In addition, the researcher telephoned various Government of Canada offices and First-Nations agencies. All of which acknowledged the high abuse rates but could or would not provide statistics.

Robin, Chester and Goldman (1996) write of the cumulative trauma and P.T.S.D. of First Nations people as contributing to the development of addictions and other psychiatric disorders. They note that P.T.S.D. appears to be strongly related to substance abuse, anxiety, and depression (p. 242). However, they also state “as a diagnostic category, P.T.S.D. fails to describe the nature and impact of severe multiple, repeated, and cumulative aspects of trauma common to many {First Nations} communities (p. 246). They suggest that “complex P.T.S.D.” or Disorders of Extreme Stress Not Otherwise Specified could be more accurate in describing the nature of stressor criteria for Native communities.

Carol Locust (1995), a researcher from the University of Arizona, has examined the impact of colonization and degradation of the aboriginal peoples culture, lifestyles, social norms, spiritual beliefs, and so on. She refers to a condition similar to P.T.S.D., referred to as Post Colonization Stress Disorder (P.C.S.D.). She notes that the one major difference between the two conditions is that with P.T.S.D., the stress eventually stops. She states that for native people, there was “no relief from the invasion”. The intense suffering frequently results in substance abuse, suicide, motor vehicle accidents, and other unnatural deaths.

Jackson (1999) further notes that “spiritual wounding” is of special note when treating First Nations children. Jackson, the Assembly of First Nations (1994), McCormick (1998), and Mussell, Nicholls, and Adler (1993) note that for treatment to be successful, it needs to be more holistic, evolving around the being of each person. This includes treatment to address the physical being, the mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of the person, as well as the harmony between each of these and the environment. In addition, LaFramboise, Trimble, and Mohhat (1990) note that First Nations healing often requires individuals to transcend the ego, rather than strengthening it as Western therapies aim to do.

Our Philosophy

We are committed to respecting and honoring individual and cultural beliefs.

We create a safe atmosphere for the comfort and dignity of clients.

We assist you in solving life's challenges and problems, adjusting to new life circumstances or events, and helping you to grow into a more comfortable, effective, and thriving individual.

About Dr. Daria

Dr. Daria Shewchuk(-Dann) [Registered Psychologist #1821 (BC)] has over 35 years experience working as a clinical, counseling psychologist and clinical social worker. She has been the owner of, and lead therapist for, Shewchuk-Dann & Associates since 1986. Dr. Shewchuk moved to Vancouver and the lower mainland in 2007.

Dr. Shewchuk's therapeutic approach is tailored to each individual client's needs and draws from a variety of therapeutic orientations.

Dr. Daria Shewchuk currently sees Adults and Youth (15 years old and up) but no longer sees Children.

Our Location

Dr. Shewchuk primarily provides services at 625-5th Avenue, New Westminister, BC. This is a private, welcoming, and comfortable enviornment.

After an initial session some services may be provided, in select cases, in Surrey, BC.

Telephone appointments may be possible in some cases, after several in-person sessions.

Our Services

Counseling with a PhD level Clinical Psychologist who has over 35 years of experience in the field.

Payment is by cash, cheque, VISA, or Mastercard at the end of each therapy session.

Psychological services are covered by most extended health care plans such as Blue Cross, Manulife and Sun Life Financial, Maritime and Great West Life.Coverage may be available from Criminal Injury or Crime Victim Assistance (i.e. BC Ministry of Justice).